Sustainable Agricultural Intensification (SAI) was initially defined as increasing agricultural production without adverse environmental impacts and without increasing the area under agriculture. Over time the concept has been broadened to integrate social, economic, and environmental components of sustainability, each of which covers multiple facets or indicators of performance. It is recognized however that it may not be possible to optimize all these aspects of sustainability simultaneously and that trade-offs between them are likely to occur, although synergies are also possible. There has been disagreement over how to achieve SAI, with some proposing that only an ‘agroecological’ intensification pathway delivers sustainability. Others take a broader perspective arguing that all aspects of ecological, genetic, and socio-economic intensification need to be considered, but then assessed in terms of the sustainability of the outcomes. A major concern is that intensification that focuses on agricultural technology can lead to inequitable outcomes for women and poorer households, while agroecological intensification building upon local capitals is generally considered more equitable. Understanding the potential outcomes and inherent trade-offs of different approaches requires interdisciplinary research, evidence and decision-making tools, some examples of which are presented in this Special Issue.

可持续农业集约化（SAI）最初的定义是在不产生不利环境影响且不增加农业面积的情况下增加农业生产。随着时间的流逝，概念已被扩展为整合可持续性的社会，经济和环境组成部分，每个组成部分涵盖多个方面或绩效指标。然而，已经认识到，虽然同时也可能实现协同作用，但不可能同时优化可持续性的所有这些方面，并且有可能在它们之间进行取舍。关于如何实现SAI一直存在分歧，有人提出只有“农业生态”集约化途径才能实现可持续性。其他人则提出了更广泛的观点，认为生态，遗传，需要考虑社会经济的集约化，然后根据成果的可持续性进行评估。主要关注的是，集中于农业技术的集约化可能导致妇女和较贫困家庭获得不平等的结果，而人们普遍认为在地方首都建立农业生态集约化更为公平。要了解不同方法的潜在结果和内在的取舍，需要跨学科的研究，证据和决策工具，其中一些实例已在本期特刊中介绍。普遍认为建立在地方首都的农业生态集约更加公平。要了解不同方法的潜在结果和内在的取舍，需要跨学科的研究，证据和决策工具，其中一些实例已在本期特刊中介绍。普遍认为建立在地方首都的农业生态集约更加公平。要了解不同方法的潜在结果和内在的取舍，需要跨学科的研究，证据和决策工具，其中一些实例已在本期特刊中介绍。